Richard H. Hughes, IV, Member of the Firm in the Health Care & Life Sciences practice, in the firm’s Washington, DC, office, was quoted in Inside Health Policy, in “New ACIP Members May Revisit Panel’s Prior Recommendations in Just Two Weeks,” by Jessica Karins. (Read the full version – subscription required.)
Following is an excerpt:
The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) radically reshaped by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. may vote in just two weeks on whether to walk back vaccine recommendations made recently by the 17 vaccine experts Kennedy unilaterally dismissed. …
The mention of HPV vaccination also stands out because one of Kennedy's new ACIP members, biostatistician and prominent COVID-19 vaccine policy critic Martin Kulldorff, submitted expert testimony opposing manufacturer Merck in January 2025 in litigation over its HPV vaccine Gardasil. Kennedy was also involved in the lawsuit before joining HHS.
"Serving as an expert witness in litigation adverse to a vaccine manufacturer is an obvious and facial conflict of interest for a newly nominated member of the ACIP. We assume that Dr. Kulldorff received compensation for his services in opposition to Merck," Richard Hughes, an attorney at Epstein Becker Green, told Inside Health Policy.
In contrast to the former members of ACIP who were dismissed, "Dr. Kulldorff has an actual, legal conflict of interest in his adverse position to a major vaccine manufacturer," Hughes told IHP.
Related reading:
- June 20, 2025: FDA Week, “Former Members, CDC Official Push Back on RFK Jr.’S ACIP Purge,” by Jessica Karins. (Read the full version – subscription required.)
And two new members, Malone and biostatistician Martin Kulldorff, have acted as paid expert witnesses in lawsuits against vaccine manufacturers, something attorney Richard Hughes of Epstein Becker Green told IHP he views as an "obvious and facial conflict of interest for a newly nominated member of the ACIP."
- June 20, 2025: FDA Week, “New ACIP Members Served as Paid Experts in Lawsuits Against Merck,” by Jessica Karins.
Richard Hughes, an attorney at Epstein Becker Green who reviewed the ACIP lineup, pointed out that new ACIP member Martin Kulldorff, a biostatistician and prominent COVID-19 contrarian, submitted expert testimony opposing Merck in January 2025 in litigation over its human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine Gardasil. Kennedy was also involved in the lawsuit before joining HHS.
In his report, Kulldorff sharply criticized Merck's handling of safety concerns. "By responding to safety concerns about the Gardasil vaccine with reports and studies that are fatally flawed, Merck has done a great disservice to public health, irrespectively of whether there is a problem with the vaccine or not," the report reviewed by IHP says. Kulldorff also sat for a deposition in October 2024 and January 2025 and is presumed to have been paid for his work, according to Hughes. …
"Serving as an expert witness in litigation adverse to a vaccine manufacturer is an obvious and facial conflict of interest for a newly nominated member of the ACIP. We assume that Dr. Kulldorff received compensation for his services in opposition to Merck," Hughes told IHP.
Hughes added that Kulldorff's involvement in litigation against a vaccine manufacturer stands in sharp contrast to Kennedy's claim previous members were dismissed to avoid conflicts of interest. "Dr. Kulldorff has an actual, legal conflict of interest in his adverse position to a major vaccine manufacturer," Hughes told IHP.
Malone has openly discussed his $450-per-hour expert witness fee on social media, according to documents shared by Hughes.
